Cedric Cobbs is a running back looking to fulfill untapped potential. He is wearing the right uniform for such a quest.
If not the next Terrell Davis, Cobbs is hoping to become the latest in a long succession of unheralded runners who found success playing in coach Mike Shanahan’s system with the Broncos.
“If you come day-in, day-out and work your butt off and do everything they want you to do, then you definitely have a great chance of making the ball team here,” Cobbs said Thursday, after the first day of the Broncos’ three-day minicamp at Dove Valley. “If you listen to them, then you will definitely become a better player. Here, you’ll get your chance. I feel fortunate to come here and learn a lot more than I knew when I came to the NFL.”
Cobbs, 25, spent last season on the Broncos’ practice squad, but entered minicamp listed third on the depth chart, behind Ron Dayne and Tatum Bell. Once touted by ESPN The Magazine as the next Bo Jackson, Cobbs has struggled to get his NFL career off the ground since coming out of Arkansas in 2003.
Drafted in the fourth round by New England in 2004, Cobbs rushed 22 times for 50 yards in the Patriots’ Super Bowl season, missing much of the season with a knee injury. He got hurt again in the 2005 preseason with the Patriots, and was released soon after, then signed with the Broncos as a free agent.
He enters minicamp healthy, hopeful it will stay that way, and eager to prove he can play at the highest level.
“I always knew for a fact that I had the talent to come out and be a star in the NFL,” said Cobbs, 6-foot, 235 pounds. “But like they say, talent isn’t everything. So, I want to put everything mentally together and do everything that they ask me to do to become the best player that I can be.”
Some of the mental aspects Cobbs is trying to improve upon are his resilience in the face of adversity, and an overall self-image as a fighter.
“I’ve learned over the past couple of years that speed and ability and strength are not always the key,” Cobbs said. “Because everybody in the NFL has a good technique. But I think I have a great attribute, of heart. I’m going to keep fighting until the last second, no matter how tired I am. I feel like I’m someone that’s eager to learn. It’s been an uphill battle for me, especially getting drafted and being released by another team and coming here and being on the practice squad.”
Shanahan wasted little time signing Cobbs when New England cut him. The Broncos boss indicated he believes Cobbs has what it takes to be a successful reclamation project.
“Cedric is a guy that we felt very highly of coming out of Arkansas. We liked his running style,” Shanahan said. “We felt very fortunate to get him on our football team when he was released. Now, he’s competing for the starting jobs.”
Staff writer Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-820-5454 or adater@denverpost.com.
